President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan concluded his four-day visit to New York, United States, on Wednesday. He had traveled to the city to attend the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Erdoğan and his wife, Emine Erdoğan, were welcomed upon their arrival in New York by Türkiye's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Ahmet Yıldız; Türkiye's Ambassador to the United States, Sedat Önal; and Türkiye's Consul General in New York, Muhittin Ahmet Yazal.
Bilateral meetings with numerous leaders
On the first day of his visit, Erdoğan met with Vietnamese President To Lam at the Turkish House. The meeting addressed bilateral relations as well as regional and global issues. Erdoğan expressed his satisfaction with Vietnam's positive response to the proposal to elevate relations to the level of a strategic partnership. Expanding cooperation, particularly in investment, trade and the defense industry, was a key focus.
That same day, Erdoğan held separate meetings with Chairman of Libya's Presidential Council Mohamed al-Menfi, Kuwaiti Crown Prince Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze. The discussions addressed preserving stability in Libya, Kosovo's position in the international community, lasting peace and stability in Lebanon, dialogue across the Balkans, and the effective use of Türkiye-Georgia-Azerbaijan cooperation mechanisms.
Speaking at the event titled “100 Years of Friendship: Türkiye-United States,” held in the United States, Erdoğan said regional and global conflicts require Türkiye and the United States to maintain close dialogue. He said economic and trade relations cannot be considered separately from strategic cooperation, adding that trade between the two countries had doubled over the past 10 years.
Erdoğan announced that trade volume, which exceeded $38 billion in 2025, had reached $28 billion in the first eight months of this year and was expected to exceed $40 billion by the end of the year. He said the $100 billion trade target set by Türkiye and the United States was achievable and stated that cooperation should be advanced in energy, nuclear energy, liquefied natural gas, civil aviation, advanced technology and the defense industry.
Erdoğan delivers message on Palestine and Gaza at UN General Assembly
In his speech at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly, Erdoğan called on countries that have not yet recognized the State of Palestine to reconsider their positions. Describing the absence of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas from the chamber as an injustice to the Palestinians, Erdoğan said Türkiye would continue to defend the Palestinian people's struggle on international platforms.
Addressing the situation in Gaza, Erdoğan claimed that 74,000 Palestinians had fallen victim to what he called Israel's “state terrorism” over the past three years. Calling for stronger pressure on Israel for the reconstruction of Gaza, Erdoğan reiterated that the United Nations Security Council should be reformed in line with the principle that “the world is bigger than five.”
Erdoğan also met with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, United Kingdom Prime Minister Andy Burnham, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, Polish President Karol Nawrocki, Bangladeshi Prime Minister Tarique Rahman and Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye. The meetings addressed bilateral relations, regional developments and global issues.
Erdoğan also attended a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump and the leaders or foreign ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. The meeting assessed efforts to end the conflict in Gaza and rebuild the region. Erdoğan later attended a reception hosted by Trump in honor of the United Nations General Assembly delegates.
Economy, climate and regional peace on the agenda
At a meeting with representatives of the Turkish-American business community, Erdoğan said strategic cooperation between Türkiye and the United States was developing in all areas. He said he believed 2027 would be a stronger year in terms of disinflation, adding that fiscal discipline was progressing positively and structural transformation had been placed at the center of the program.
Erdoğan said Türkiye was the United States' largest supplier of liquefied natural gas and announced that they aimed to expand energy cooperation into all areas, including nuclear energy. He said the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP31, which Türkiye will host in Antalya from November 9 to 20, 2026, would focus on translating climate decisions into action.
During his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Erdoğan said Türkiye would continue its efforts to bring the Russia-Ukraine War to an end with lasting peace. Emphasizing the need to ensure navigational safety in the Black Sea, Erdoğan said attacks targeting commercial vessels could not be justified.
A joint statement issued after the meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zeidi said Ankara and Baghdad had agreed to deepen security cooperation. The statement set out the goals of fully restoring state authority in Sinjar and ending the presence of illegal foreign armed elements. It said the Turkish Armed Forces would gradually transfer the Başika-Zilkan base to the Iraqi Federal Government in line with the agreed mechanism and timetable, depending on Iraq's progress in taking security measures.
During his meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Erdoğan discussed the normalization of Türkiye-Armenia relations, contacts in trade and transport, and the peace process between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Erdoğan emphasized the importance of maintaining the positive momentum in bilateral relations.
Call for integration from the Turkish-American community
Meeting with Turks and members of brother communities in New York, Erdoğan said Muslims should be able to integrate into the societies where they live without giving up their languages, cultures or roots. Calling for stronger representation of the Turkish-American community in politics, business, academia, culture and the arts, Erdoğan said social solidarity would contribute to the fight against Islamophobia, xenophobia and discrimination.
Erdoğan also said it was important for citizens to exercise their democratic rights and express their will at the ballot box in the upcoming U.S. midterm elections.
